PCB / Breadboard / Perfboard

Board

Physical platforms for building circuits. Breadboard is solderless and reusable for prototyping. Perfboard has copper pads for soldering permanent one-off builds. PCB is a custom-manufactured board for production-quality circuits.

What it looks like

A typical board — exact shape, colour and markings vary between manufacturers.

Types & variants

Solderless breadboard (half-size, full-size, with binding posts)Perfboard (copper pads, no traces — you wire with solder)Stripboard / Veroboard (copper strips, cut to break connections)Single-sided PCB (one copper layer)Double-sided PCB (two copper layers, plated through-holes)Multi-layer PCB (4–8 layers for dense designs)Flexible PCB (polyimide, for wearables / hinges)Aluminum PCB (metal core, for high-power LEDs)

Key specs

Pitch

mm / in

Hole spacing. Standard 2.54mm (0.1") fits DIP ICs and most through-hole parts.

Copper weight

oz/ft²

1oz is standard, 2oz for power boards, 3+ oz for very high current.

Board thickness

1.6mm is standard. 0.8mm and 2.0mm also common.

Min trace width

0.25mm (10mil) is hobby-safe. Pro fabs go to 0.1mm.

Min via drill

0.3mm drill / 0.6mm pad is hobby-safe. Fabs go smaller.

Markings

PCBs print silkscreen labels for component placement (R1, C3, U2, etc.) and orientation markers (pin 1 dot, IC notch). Breadboard rows are sometimes numbered.

Standard values

Breadboard bus strips: 2 power rails top and bottom. Tie-points: 5 holes per row. Perfboard grid: 2.54mm standard. Common board sizes: 5×7cm, 7×9cm, 10×15cm.

How to choose

1) Prototyping fast → solderless breadboard. 2) One-off permanent → perfboard or stripboard. 3) Multiple copies or production → custom PCB. 4) High current → 2oz copper or aluminum core. 5) Dense / high-speed → 4-layer PCB. 6) Wearable / bendable → flex PCB.

Pinout & package

Breadboard: two power rails (long), terminal strips in groups of 5 tied vertically. Center groove fits DIP ICs. Perfboard: isolated pads, you solder jumper wires. Stripboard: horizontal copper rows, cut with a drill bit between holes to isolate.

Example circuits

555 timer blinker on breadboard (5-minute first build)
Arduino shield on perfboard (permanent prototype)
Custom PCB for a sensor breakout (designed in KiCad)
High-power LED driver on aluminum-core PCB
Wearable LED matrix on flex PCB

Common failures

Breadboard: intermittent contact from worn spring clips, especially on thick component leads. Perfboard: cold solder joints, lifted pads from overheating. PCB: short circuits under solder mask, broken traces, misdrilled vias.

How to test

Breadboard: continuity-beep between two holes in the same row. PCB: visual inspection + multimeter continuity on power rails before powering up. For shorts: check resistance between VCC and GND (should be kΩ+, not near-zero).

Substitutes

Wire-wrap for high-density prototypes. Manhattan-style (glued copper islands) for RF. Dead-bug style (ICs upside-down, air-wired) for quick RF/analog prototypes.

Where to buy

DigiKey Mouser LCSC Robu Amazon